Ari Järvelä, Head of Tieto's Data-Driven Businesses (left) with Taneli Tikka, the man in charge of Tieto's new Data Incubator.

Ari Järvelä, Head of Tieto's Data-Driven Businesses (left) with Taneli Tikka, the man in charge of Tieto's new Data Incubator.

Got a Data-Driven Idea but Can’t Quite Make It on Your Own? Tieto’s Data Incubator Is at Your Service!

Industrial PRIME | November 10, 2016

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Got a Data-Driven Idea but Can’t Quite Make It on Your Own? Tieto’s Data Incubator Is at Your Service!

Industrial PRIME | November 10, 2016

A week ago, Tieto hosted a launch event to kick off its incubator on data-driven ideas. Industrial PRIME was there and, while pondering how to write about the event, got a wild idea. To get a more concrete viewpoint on what Tieto’s data incubator is all about, we decided to jump into the role of a start-up with an exciting idea based on data.

Many of our readers may not know it, but Industrial PRIME itself took its first steps in an incubator roughly a decade ago. Over the years, start-up methodology has become such an inseparable part of our way of working that we may not even want to grow up into a proper company at all.

Anyhow, let us pretend for a second that we have come up with a superb idea. A data-driven idea that is going to change lives! The only problem is, we’re not quite sure how to actually start developing it. Nor do we actually have that much resources in our hands.

So how are we going to turn our idea into a mature product that will have a chance to scale and conquer the world?

It’s time for us to get in touch with Mr Taneli Tikka, the man in charge of TietoData Incubator. We find all the information we need from the Tieto website, and submit our application to join forces with the incubator. Together with his team, Tikka is going to have a look at what we’ve got in mind, and if they see the potential, they’ll get back to us.

We know that not all applicants can make it, but somehow we are feeling lucky. Perhaps because our idea isn’t even real…

But why would we want to share our great idea with a company like Tieto? The answer is simple; in fact, some of the reasons were already hinted above.

“Tieto has what it takes to take any data-driven idea to the next level,” Tikka points out. “An entrepreneur on the other hand may not have the human resources, the facilities, or the technology platforms needed to make it happen. This is where we can step in and help you out.”

That’s a very good point. But we remain suspicious and start asking more questions in our head: Why is Tieto all of a sudden so eager to help us? Nothing is ever free, so surely they are going to want to benefit from our idea as well? Once the unique product or service that’s been cooking in our mind is ripe enough, are they just going to grab it and run off? That would be harsh!

Thankfully, Mr Ari Järvelä notices that we are getting a little paranoid here. He is the main man of Tieto’s Data-Driven Businesses unit, which was just launched in September and under whose umbrella the incubator will operate. And he is here to calm us down.

“Your product or service will most likely become part of our offering to our own customers,” he reassures us. “That means it will remain yours, but at the same time it will enable Tieto to expand its own product portfolio and serve its customers better. Our customers will be more satisfied and therefore more committed to their cooperation with us.”

Okay, that’ll do for now. But can Tieto really help us? After all, our idea is pretty industry-specific. And it’s in Chinese. We’re not quite sure if Mr Tikka and his team will be able to pull it off…

Again, we are offered a reminder of Tieto’s strength. Human resources-wise, Tieto has a global army of 13,000 experts that it can tap into at any given moment. That is a lot of expertise on a wide variety of industries. It is therefore quite safe to say that Tieto is more than likely to be able to find the right people for our particular project.

Point taken. To tell you the truth, we feel slightly embarrassed now. But as you know, people can get really careful when their multi-million euro idea is at stake! So perhaps we can be forgiven.

“I think just about any company in the world will have to determine what exactly is their relationship to data.”

As part of Thursday’s launch event, five start-ups introduced their data-driven ideas to Mr Tikka and other members of the Tieto jury. They were given a proper grilling before the winner was announced.

Seeking Opportunities on All Fronts

Let us get a bit more serious for a change. We learn that Tieto’s new incubator has already proceeded into collaboration mode with two prominent start-ups.

One of them was discovered in a recent hackathon organized together with a Finnish employment pension company, while the other one emerged as the winner in Thursday’s incubator launch event, where five start-ups were given the opportunity to promote their data-driven ideas. Time will tell what the outcome of these partnerships will be.

So as not to give you the wrong idea, it should be pointed out that Tieto’s data incubator is by no means limited to start-ups. Instead, Tieto is actively seeking opportunities on several fronts, wishing to collaborate with companies and organizations of various degrees of maturity.

“The partner may be one of our existing clients striving for business renewal,” explains Tikka. “We are more than willing to join forces with them in co-creation and the development of fresh ideas for mutual benefit. Additionally, our ecosystem contains a wide range of strategic partners, and we even collaborate with universities in the field of scientific research.”

Last but not least, Tieto has its own internal incubator for the development of data-driven ideas. Tieto knows that business renewal, especially by means of embracing data and finding a unique perspective to making the most out of it, is essential for any company wishing to exist in the future. More importantly, the company understands that this concerns Tieto as well and not only its customers.

“I think just about any company in the world will have to determine what exactly is their relationship to data. Tieto is not an exception,” Tikka concludes.

All this gave us plenty of food for thought. Who knows, perhaps one day we will also take our magazine back to an incubator and make our business break right through the ceiling. Or maybe we will just keep doing our thing like a bunch of Peter Pans in Neverland.